There are many attractive places in the world and among them is Portland. Portland is a seaport and the largest city in the northwestern US state of Oregon. 1.(locate) at where two local rivers meet, the city was2.(tradition) known as a place for water transportation. While it once had the unfortunate reputation as one of the most dangerous port cities in the world due to wild organized crime, Portland set out 3.(make) changes in the 1960s.
In a recent survey, Portland ranks as the 4.(nine) most popular US city. It is frequently recognized as one of the world’s most environmentally-friendly cities because 5. its well-built pedestrian walkways, large community of cyclists and convenient public transportation. Its climate is marked by warm, dry summers and cool, rainy winters. This climate is ideal for growing roses, and Portland 6.(call) the “City of Roses” for over a century.
However, today’s Portland is better known for its music. In 2013, The Guardian named the city’s music scene as one of the “ 7.(much) lively” in the United States. And the New York Times called it not just “the capital of karaoke” in the US8.also “a most exciting music is the large number of movie theaters 9. (serve) beer, called “brew and view” theaters. That may be because Portland is known as a city of beer, 10.has the largest number of beer breweries of any city in the world.
In terms of food, Portland has also been named the best city in the world for street food. Food carts are extremely popular there, with over 600 licensed carts around the city.
We are all reasonable beings and it is very human to do unreasonable things at times. The following story tells you what I _____ .
At lunchtime, Jimmy, Patrick, Devon, and I began our regular _______of our lunches. I glanced across the busy cafeteria and saw the_______student, Joel. He was holding his plate and waiting in lines.
Patrick noticed him too. “Why’s the new kid_______like the headmaster?” he asked. Devon and Jimmy laughed.
“Joel’s cool, and his clothes are always neat and clean. He’s in my English and history classes,” I said. However, I kept the________that Joel and I had become friends when we worked on a project together. We discovered that we were both enthusiastic readers---something I would never admit to Patrick, Jimmy, and Devon.
I was that Joel was walking toward us. “Don’t do it,” I thought, but ______seconds he was at our table. My friends raised their eyebrows. Jimmy, Devon and Patrick________their backpacks on the table and chairs so that there was no_______left for another person to sit down. Patrick said, “I don’t think we have room.”
This awkward situation_______the air. I could_______Joel looking at me, but I stared at my lunch______it contained precious pearls of wisdom instead of rice and beans. After a long, ______ pause, Joel left. I______have spoken up for him, but I couldn’t walk away from my three friends, could I?
Joel didn’t speak to me after that______. He was soon hanging around with another group of kids. A few months later, I saw an announcement about Joel being chosen to be president of the class book club. I was______for Joel’s achievements, but I realized I had made a big mistake when I said _____ at the lunch table that day. why was I so afraid that my friends might_______that I like to read?
As I stared at the announcement, I knew I needed to______to Joel—even if he did not want to become my friend again. I was certain that my three friends would not agree. I was also certain that I________losing them as well.______ , I knew that I would lose myself if I did nothing.
As the dismissal bell rang, I gathered up my books, took a deep breath, and went to find Joel.
1.A. regret B. value C. lose D. admire
2.A. routine B. process C. step D. course
3.A. lucky B. good C. new D. top
4.A. behaved B. treated C. laughed D. dressed
5.A. words B. ideas C. promise D. truth
6.A. on B. in C. at D. by
7.A. lay B. threw C. folded D. piled
8.A. space B. food C. time D. book
9.A. rounded B. covered C. filled D. froze
10.A. taste B. smell C. hear D. feel
11.A. even if B. as if C. in case D. now that
12.A. tough B. painful C. uncomfortable D. frightening
13.A. need B. should C. would D. must
14.A. greeting B. change C. meeting D. lesson
15.A. happy B. sorry C. thankful D. anxious
16.A. anything B. something C. everything D. nothing
17.A. hold out B. find out C. turn out D. give out
18.A. adapt B. apologize C. smile D. refer
19.A. risked B. permitted C. tried D. suggested
20.A. Therefore B. Meanwhile C. However D. Besides
We all have an idea about the common types of environmental problems. 1.But, the fact is, it does affect mankind, other living forms and the environment as a whole.
What is light pollution? 2.The obvious cause of light pollution is the use of outdoor lighting products improperly. It can be office lighting, car headlights, station lights, streetlights and many more.
3.Upon studies, it is found that obvious effects are observed in the behaviour of night animals, for bright light at night makes it difficult for these animals to hunt, wander and perform their regular activities. light pollution is directly or indirectly responsible for causing several plant diseases. Its effects are related to disturbance in the physical rhythm, which contributes to risks of developing cancer cells. So, it’s nothing less than a threat to human health.
You have already seen the negative effects of light pollution on creatures. Apart from this, the actual cost of misused light is about millions of dollars every year. It also leads to the release of greenhouse gases and global warming4.
While outdoor lighting and using man-made lighting products are part of our modern lifestyle, some simple ways will surely help in reducing light pollution. For example, while installing outdoor lighting, make sure that they are pointed downwards5. Believe it or not, many people living in the urban areas cannot view clear sky and stars at night. Let’s contribute our part in reducing the pollution.
A. Light pollution is harmful to both animals and plants.
B. It presents all forms of misused man-mad light.
C. After all, fuels are used for producing electricity
D. Also, use only the required lighting equipment for both home and offices.
E. Citizens should be forbidden to install outdoor lighting
F. Light pollution affects animals’ normal activities in the daytime.
G. However, light pollution may be a new term to many of us.
When TV news programs report wars or disasters, the editors rarely use the most horrifying pictures of dead or wounded victims because they don’t want to upset their viewers. Even so, viewers are usually warned in advance that they “may find some of these disturbing” so they can look away if they choose. But the men and women whose jobs are to record those scenes--the TV cameramen—have no such choice. It is their duty to witness the horrors of the war and record them, no matter how horrifying and unpleasant they may be. Consequently, it is one of the most dangerous, exposed and emotionally taxing job that the world offers.
Today, the demand for their work is rising. The explosion of satellite broadcasting and 24 hour news in recent years have created an almost insatiable(无法满足的)demand for TV information. But major broadcasters and the TV news agencies--such as Reuters and WTN---have never had enough staff to meet the world wide demand for up-to-date pictures, so increasingly they turn to “Freelance” TV cameramen.
These freelance cameramen are independent operators tied to no particular organization. They will work for any company which hires them for just a few hours or for several weeks in a war zone. But if a freelance cameraman is injured in the course of the job, the TV company is not responsible for him. The freelancer must survive on his own.
“TV will always need hard, vivid moving pictures which are fresh, but these companies feel uncomfortable with large numbers of employees on their books,” explains Nik Growing, once foreign editor for Britain’s Channel 4 News and now a BBC news presenter.
“By hiring freelancers, they can buy in the skills they need only when they need them. It also enables them to contract out the risk,” he says.
1.The underlined word “taxing” in Para 1 most probably means_________.
A. demanding B. striking
C. satisfying D. encouraging
2.TV news agencies turn to freelance cameramen in order to _______.
A. save expenses and avoid risk
B. get first hand information and pictures
C. look for pictures that are of fine qualities
D. buy the horrifying pictures they need
3.From the passage we can know that _______.
A. TV cameramen should be given better choice of work
B. TV cameramen are being challenged by the freelancers
C. TV cameramen have to witness disasters and killing whether they like them or not
D. TV cameramen have to contract out the risks for their companies
4.The author of the passage shows his _______ the freelance cameramen.
A. respect for B. sympathy to
C. ignorance of D. admiration to
It seems that we are one step closer to finding alien life and maybe a future home for humanity. Scientists from NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) have found a new solar system filled with planets that look like Earth and could even support life.
The group of seven planets, which orbits a star called Trappist-1, is 40 light years away from Earth in the constellation of Aquarius(水瓶座). And three of them are in the so-called “habitable (宜居的)zone” ----the area around a star where liquid water is most likely to be found. This is important because water is a necessary ingredient for life.
All of the planets were found using a method called “transit photometry.” This works by watching out for when a planet passes in front of its host start. This blocks out a small amount of light, allowing us to see the planet and learn about its size.
“This is an amazing planetary system---not only because we have found so many planets, but because they are all surprisingly similar in size to the Earth,” astronomer Michael Gillon from the University of Liege in Belgium told The Independent.
Trappist-1 is a “dwarf star (矮星)” which is colder and shines dimmer than our sun. If a person were on one of the seven planets, everything would look a lot darker than usual. The amount of light heading toward our eyes would be about 200 times less than we get from the sun, according to The Independent.
Because of that, Trappist-1, together with many other dwarf stars, was never on the list of places where scientists look for alien life. but Michael Gillon, lead researcher behind the discovery, decided to give dwarf stars a chance. He built a telescope in Chile to observe 60 of the closest dwarf stars, and it turned out that Trappist-1 was worthy of the effort.
The researchers hope that they can spend more time watching the newly found planets to learn more about them. Even though more research is needed before determining whether these planets could really support life, the discovery is still encouraging. It shows just how many Earth-size planets could be out there.
“The discovery gives us a hint that finding a second Earth is not just a matter of if, but when,” NASA scientist Thomas Zurbuchen told the Telegraph.
1.Which of the following statements is TRUE about the newly found planets?
A. It will take human beings about 40 years to travel to them
B. Some of them might have the proper conditions to support life
C. They are spread out in the habitable zone around Trappist-1
D. Underground ice has been found in some them
2.“Transit photometry” is a special method mainly used to ________.
A. tell apart different stars
B. test the brightness of stars
C. search for and measure planets
D. work out the distance between stars
3.We can infer from the article that _______.
A. scientists will soon find an Earth-like planet that can support human life
B. researchers know a little about the environment on the newly found planets
C. dwarf stars have long been a popular choice in the hunt for Earth-like planets
D. the size of a planet is the top concern when scientists search for a “second Earth”
4.Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
A. Life in space soon?
B. Any aliens in space?
C. Trappist-1, a dark dwarf star
D. New record, seven new solar systems
There is a quote by William Purkey, a well-known professor of education, that goes, “Dance like no one is watching, love like you’ll never be hurt, sing like no one is listening, and live like it’s heaven on earth.” I seems like the perfect life philosophy---and one I’ve learned to apply to running over the year.
But I didn’t always feel this way. In my early days, when I weighed 240 pounds, I ran like everyone was watching---and judging. If I was on a run and saw a car approaching, I’d stop and pretend I was looking for something I’d lost I bought the high-tech gear and clothes that I thought would make people believe I was a runner. And I didn’t have a clue if the expensive shoes I was wearing were the right kind for me---I just wanted to look like I fit in with this group.
To be honest, I felt a certain satisfaction in believing that someone was watching. I really thought that other people cared about my performance. The best example of this was a combined, two-lap marathon in Florence, Italy. As I approached the finishing line, the crowd began to cheer. I was surprised. Here I was, thousands of miles from home, and the Italians were shouting for “IIPenguino.”
About 20 yards from the finishing, the truth set in when the winner of the full marathon went past me as I was finishing the half-marathon. No one was cheering for me. no one probably even noticed that I was finishing. I couldn’t help but smile at my own illusion of self-importance.
That’s when I realized I had been running for every reason except the right one. I ran to make other people happy, ran to live up to their expectations. But no one was watching---no one cared. So I decided I was going to run for me---just me---and gained a new enjoyment from the sport I hadn’t truly experienced yet. I’ve learned to run like no one is watching.
So if you see me at race, and I look like a 60-year-old guy waddling(蹒跚)along, don’t worry. I’m fine. The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.
1.The writer begins her anecdote by __________.
A. telling her running story B. explaining a life philosophy
C. listing some life rules D. introducing a quotation
2.It can be inferred from paragraph 2 that the writer__________.
A. used sports clothes and shoes to attract attention
B. was concerned about what others thought of her
C. liked to be the focus other runners
D. struggled to find the right shoes to fit her
3.When the writer was near the finishing line, ____________.
A. she smiled at her own achievement
B. the crowd cheered for her madly
C. nobody really cared about her running
D. She realized the importance of confidence
4.By telling her own story, the writer wanted to ___________.
A. tell us to live a life of our own
B. inspire more people to run
C. expect us to improve our health by running
D. stress the importance of determination
